


The Fever That Told

by elizainlove



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-04
Updated: 2014-08-04
Packaged: 2018-02-11 16:23:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2074899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizainlove/pseuds/elizainlove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'“What on earth do you want Ja- what’s the matter?” his panic must have showed on his face as her features dropped into concern rather than irritation “What’s happened, James?”<br/>“I-Its” His breathing was fast and he was doing his best not to cry “Thomas. He’s not well Mrs Hughes and I didn’t know who else to tell”'</p>
<p>Thomas has a high fever, but will telling Mrs Hughes be the end for both Thomas and Jimmy? After all, the only way Jimmy could have found out was if he was sleeping in the other mans room.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Fever That Told

**Author's Note:**

> One-shot random. Enjoy.

“Mrs Hughes?” Jimmy knew he wasn’t meant to be in the women’s corridor and he had never overstepped this boundary before now- but he needed to tonight. He needed Mrs Hughes “Mrs Hughes?” Jimmy whispered again, knocking a little louder than the first time on the door. He couldn’t get much louder or else he would wake the others. Why wouldn’t the woman just wake up already? “Mrs Hughes?” He knocked again, but this time he kept rapping the door lightly with his knuckles until he heard movement on the other side and the door half opened to reveal a tired looking house keeper.  
“What on earth do you want Ja- what’s the matter?” his panic must have showed on his face as her features dropped into concern rather than irritation “What’s happened, James?”  
“I-Its” His breathing was fast and he was doing his best not to cry “Thomas. He’s not well Mrs Hughes and I didn’t know who else to tell”  
“Why didn’t you speak to Mr Carson?” But even as she spoke she stepped out of her room and started to walk towards the men’s corridor  
“He’d ask how I found out” Jimmy looked at the floor “Considering it’s the middle of the night and Thomas- Mr Barrow is in no state to walk anywhere” He glanced sideways at the older woman, trying to gauge her reaction but she only nodded once, a frown creasing her brow, and sped up her pace.  
When they reached Thomas’ door Jimmy pushed it open, not bothering to knock and went straight to the bed. He sat down next to Mr Barrows’ propped up torso and felt his forehead.  
In the low lamplight Mr Hughes could see quite plainly that Thomas was more than a little unwell. His normally pale features were chalk white, his lips showing no colour at all- his hair was stuck to his forehead and sweat was dripping down his neck and onto his bare torso. A waste paper basket sat by Jimmy’s feet, Mrs Hughes didn’t need to look into it to know what it contained.   
“I took off his shirt to try and cool him down a bit” Jimmy explained in a strained voice as he stroked the hair back off the unknowing Thomas’ face “but his temperature just keeps climbing”  
“How long has he been like this?” She asked, stepping closer to the bed and leaning over to put a hand on the brunet’s brow.  
“He was fine when we went up to bed a few hours ago. He just said he was tired” Jimmy took Thomas’ uninjured hand and squeezed it “but then I woke about half an hour ago because I could feel his temperature- I- I didnt know what to do- whether to find help…” he trailed off and looked pleadingly at Mrs Hughes   
“You did the right thing, James” She glanced worriedly at the closed door “We will have to tell Dr Clarkson a different story of course, but it was a wise choice that you came and got me”  
Jimmy nodded his head stiffly and looked back at Thomas “Thomas? Thomas can you hear me?” But Mr Barrow only lay against his raised pillows, his head lolling against Jimmy’s shoulder, eyes flickering “He woke earlier”  
“did he say anything?”   
“Not much…he didn’t seem to know where he was…or who I was. I think he thought he was in France”  
They both understood France to mean the trenches.  
“I’m going to go call Dr Clarkson- I won’t tell Mr Carson just yet, but I am afraid I will have to inform him of the situation before the doctors arrives” She looked at Jimmy, and he couldn’t quite decipher her emotion “If you want to be here when the others come, I am afraid you will have to step back from goings on” she looked troubled for a seconds before she turned and left the room.  
Jimmy kept staring at the place the house keeper had stood a few seconds before. She was right. He had no rights at all. Once the doctor arrived he wouldn’t even be allowed to be in the room- or hear the diagnosis. Not like a spouse would have been. Not like a fiancé. He would even have more rights if they had even been lawfully courting.   
He looked down at Thomas, squeezing his hand harder than he probably should “God, it’s so unfair. If you- if you die because I was afraid to go get help quicker...”  
Minuets passed and Jimmy just sat and stroked Thomas’ hair. There was nothing else he could do- unlike Thomas he had never been trained as a medic. He wandered if it had been the other way round Thomas would have known what to do “If you get out of this, I’m going to need you to teach me how to bloody help you, you stupid idiot”  
“Yes sir”   
Jimmy jumped and looked down at Thomas “Thomas?”  
Thomas kept his eyes shut but a look of fear came across his sweat drenched face “Keep your mouth shut- don’t talk”  
“Why- what? Why cant I talk to you?”  
Thomas’ breath suddenly increased. His chest raising and falling in rapid motion “The bombs, sir. Gas bombs. The smoke- I can see it- I- I – its in my lungs, I. no.” Thomas’ voice was raising from a whisper, becoming louder with each passing word.   
“Shhh” Jimmy hissed “You’ve got to be quiet”   
But Thomas only began to thrash about above the covers- rasping for air the whole time.  
“You’ve got to be quite or the German’s will hear us, Cooperate Barrow” Jimmy invented wildly, hoping this would somehow quieten the man down.   
He couldn’t wake the others.   
Miraculously this lie had stopped his movements, but Thomas’ breathing was still unsteady and he had his eyes screwed shut “No. No. Not again. They’re shelling”  
“But they’re going to stop in a second- just you wait” Thomas was now hanging onto the front of Jimmy’s nightshirt, and Jimmy, not knowing what else to do, held him close.  
“I don’t want to go over the top. Not again. Not now. Please” His voice was almost pleading and he arched his back, throwing his head back and colliding it with the wall   
“Stop! Please, Thomas Stop” Jimmy grabbed at him, using all his strength to try and pull him close and calm him down “Thomas please, Its Jimmy”  
Then there was silence. Thomas’ rasping crying stopped and his face went lax. He fell back slumped against the wall.  
Jimmy stared, and for one loud, thumping heartbeat, pure, cold, undiluted dread leaked through his veins, setting every nerve ending alight with frozen fire.   
“Thomas” His whisper seemed to hang in the air like morning due, covering everything and filling his pours.   
…no…  
The door opened and time started up again, one hundred times louder than ever before.   
“James?” He could hear the uncertainty in Mr Hughes’ whisper as her word dug into his ear, making them ring.  
He didn’t look up. He couldn’t look up. Not from the breathless form of his love. Not for anything.   
He could vaguely feel Mr Hughes’ presence lingering by the door, but he didn’t care. Fuck her. Fuck Downton. Fuck.  
In apparent slow motion he lifted a hand and placed it on Thomas’ chest, feeling every resisting force against his movements like cool water.  
His hand lay on Thomas’ chest for barely a second before he was wrenching it back in shock as the other man shot up into a sitting position, letting out a huge, silence shattering gasp for life as he did so.   
“Thomas” Jimmy caught him before he could fall backwards again, crawling onto the bed behind him and wrapping one arm around his middle to keep him up as the dark haired man pulled in great lung fulls of stale air.  
“Thomas? Thomas? Can you hear me?”  
Thomas slid his fingers over Jimmy’s free hand and intertwined them, his head dropping backwards onto Jimmy’s shoulder “Yes”   
He sounded awful.   
But no sooner had he spoken than Mrs Hughes was by his side, her face almost as pale as his, tear tracks evident against her papery skin “Water. Here” She whispered briskly and used one hand to support Thomas’ head and the other to bring the glass to his lips.  
Thomas drank before leaning back between Jimmy’s legs and into his chest again and letting him stroke small circles into his stomach.  
The room was filled yet again with more silence before Mrs Hughes broke it “James”  
He looked up at her and knew what she was about to say.  
“James, he’ll be here any moment. I have to go and wake Mr Carson”  
Jimmy nodded “Can’t you just tell Mr Carson I called Dr Clarkson? Then get him once he’s here? You could say that I’d only just woken you and..and…” the words died on his lips and he knew it was no good. Mrs Hughes had been better than he had ever expected she could be “Yes. Yes, thank you Mrs Hughes”  
She sighed and left them alone once again.  
Jimmy kissed Thomas’ neck making his smile drowsily.  
“I have to leave” Jimmy said shortly, sliding out from behind Thomas “Dr Clarkson will be here in a minute”  
“So?” Thomas looked like he was going to get upset again “stay” he tried to sit up but only managed half way before his eyes flickered again and he took in short breaths   
“Thomas!” Jimmy lurched forwards and pulled him up, helping him to sit up against the headboard “Breath slowly, you’re not bloody doing that all over again”  
Thomas frowned but took in three long breaths “Doing what?”  
But Jimmy could hear the voices approaching from the hall so he didn’t have time to answer “Don’t worry. Now, I will see you after the doctor has gone okay, love? Try not to be too much of an awkward patient, okay?” He leaned in and kissed his cheek before letting go of his hand and turning to face the door just in time to see it open and three figures come in.  
“James?” Mr Carson spoke disapprovingly “You may leave now”  
“Yes, Mr Carson” Jimmy nodded and he brushed passed Dr Clarkson as he headed for the door   
“And I would think it would be fitting if you did not enter this room again considering past circumstances”  
“Mr Barrow and I are friends now, sir” Jimmy felt angry. All these years and the old fool still held that against the both of them.  
“Be that as it may-“   
Mrs Hughes interrupted “I don’t think there will likely be any more trouble between them now, do you? It has been a fair few years since then”  
“Yes, well…” Mr Carson looked down at Mrs Hughes and seemed to battle with himself briefly “You may return after we are finished, but only if Dr Clarkson permits it”  
“Actually Mr Carson” Spoke up Dr Clarkson “I would like to ask James a few things if I may”  
Mr Carson looked irritated at being undermined yet again but sighed and agreed none the less.  
James stood and waited on tender hooks as the doctor examined the now drowsy Mr Barrow.   
What was he going to ask? Jimmy started to invent wild scenarios that would explain as to why he had been the person to find Thomas.  
“James…”   
Oh god, no, he wasn’t ready. He was a terrible liar and he hadn’t had time to think yet.  
“Can you tell me his symptoms?” Dr Clarkson looked at him quizzically from Thomas’s side. Thomas was also looking at him, through his long eyelashes, no particular emotions gracing his face.   
“His symptoms..?..” Jimmy said stupidly   
“Yes” Dr Clarkson looked puzzled for a second before elaborating “It means how he has been, if he has been delirious or his temperature has been changing dramatically, or anything like that”  
So he wasn’t being asked why he was in Thomas’ room- he was so relieved that he didn’t even find a polite retort to tell the doctor he wasn’t so stupid not to know what a symptom was “Uh, yes, he, uh, his temperature just kept rising but he seemed to have cold sweats too, his breathing was quite shallow and fast and I couldn’t wake him at all for about an hour” He paused not knowing whether Thomas would want him to say the next bit “He was also quite delirious actually, about being in the trenches mostly… I had to try and stop him from thrashing around”   
Dr Clarkson looked concerned “When he woke up….did he seem much different?”  
“yes, sir. He knew where he was, and he had cooled down somewhat” Jimmy looked between the doctor and Thomas “What do you think is wrong with him?”  
Instead of answering Dr Clarkson looked towards Mr Carson and Mrs Hughes.  
“Yes, I dare say you can answer that question, Doctor” Mrs Hughes answered politely  
Jimmy made a mental note to thank her later.  
“Well I think he had quite a serious fever- no not the Spanish flue” He added, correctly interpreting Jimmy’s worried look “But the flue anyway, though I am not yet certain of which one”  
Of course he bloody doesn’t know, Jimmy thought bitterly.  
“I think he will make a full recovery however”  
That means I will have to keep an eye on him full time- not that Jimmy minded.

The next few days passed with relative fuss being made over Thomas, which he enjoyed, even in he tried not to show it.   
“Don’t lie to me” Jimmy said as he lounged in Thomas’ arm chair, smoking “You love being pampered and given pity cake by Mrs Patmore” He grinned and put down his next card on the table between them.  
Thomas grinned and took a swig of tea before muttering “that card was bloody awful. Are you trying to let me win? I’m not going to die from losing ya know”  
Jimmy just grunted and threw a pillow at Thomas’ face “Shut the hell up”


End file.
